Tactica Khorne Daemonkin: Skarbrand + New WD Pics!
Today we have a very special Tactica: Khorne Daemonkin, SKARBRAND! I tracked down some exclusive pics showcasing this new amazing model and his rules!
Hey guys!
Welcome to a very special edition of Tactica Khorne Daemonkin. Today we discuss Skarbrand, the new model that goes up for pre orders this weekend and the rules found in this weekends white dwarf… and yes, as the title says… i have some leaks for you!
The Model
There is no denying it, this is a Beautiful model! I am a massive fan of the tattered wings, especially how they are held together by chains and adorned with brass icons. The pose is also a massive improvement from the standard Bloodthirster kit, being solid and grounded makes him feel so much more imposing that the little fire prance his FMC brothers are doing. The torn flesh on his face along with the beard are also nice touches that i think make for one exceptional kit. Cannot wait to get my hands on this one!
The Rules
First things first we have a few bandaids to rip off….
- His faction remains Chaos Daemons, NOT Khorne Daemonkin as we had all hoped… meaning if you want him, you have to ally in a Combined Arms Detachment of Chaos Daemons… i am sure this made a lot of players very angry… but he it is Khorne, and Skarbrands rage in infectious…
- No updates to his rules at all… no gargantuan creature, no strength D weapons… nothing. He is exactly the same as he was in the Chaos Daemons Codex to the letter….which in my opinion is a good thing… here is why…
Ok now that we have ripped those clean lets gave a look at what we do have, what we have is a truly unstoppable close combat daemon who cannot be bested in 1 on 1 combat. (Except maybe Draigo)
Skarbrand has WS, BS and I of 10, so he is almost always going to go first and almost always going to hit on a 3+ add to this re rolls from hatred and you have and incredibly fast and accurate killing machine.
He has S, T and A of 6 so he cannot be instant killed by S10 weapons like Daemon Princes and makes 9 attacks on the charge (6 + 2 for rage + 1 for 2 CCW)
His two weapons give him Ap2, Fleshbane and armourbane so that is 9 attacks, hitting on a 3+ re-rollable, wounding on a 2+ with Ap2 and if he is your warlord these all inflict instant death!…. did I mention that that was at Initiative 10? Same time as Hammer of Wrath? WOW!
He also puts out considerable hurt on vehicles with 9 Strength 7 (6 +1 for furious charge) attacks with armourbane! That is an astonishing amount of punishment that will easily drop any vehicle, Imperial knights included!
So basically all you really need to know is anything he gets into combat with… dies… simple… BUT getting into combat is another thing entirely! Here are a few things to consider.
- Skarbrand is cheap, only costing 225pts, what this means is he does not have to make it into combat to earn his worth! You can use his terrifying presence to really mess with your opponent. For example you could place him somewhere that you want your opponent to focus on, while he has the attention of the enemy guns you charge your hounds/Maulerfiends/bloodthirsters/berzerkers or whatever up the other flank. Nobody will be firing at your army when Skarbrand is in range…
- If you will be taking an allied CAD you can use the second HQ slot to get a herald with the Grimour of True Names and potentially give Skarbrand a 3+ invulnerable save
- If you are prepared to add a psychic element to your force you can add Be’lakor and cast invisibility on Skarbrand which will force your opponent to fire snap shots
- You can hold Skarbrand in reserve and deep strike him in once the major threats are locked in combat with your other units
A few other things to mention with Skarbrand are that he has a S5 template weapon, this is great for thinning out blob squads, cooking units in open topped transports, torching units in cover and making overwatch. But the big one is his 12″ bubble of Rage and Hatred! This heavily influences how you use Skarbrand. It applies to friend and foe so if you let your opponent get the charge Skarbrand is actually helping your opponent! So to that end I advise surrounding Skarbrand with Fleshounds. They benefit fully from both Rage and Hatred and are fast enough that you should be able to secure the charge on your opponent
While Skarbrand is an insanely powerful combat badarse one of his biggest uses is as a force multiplier, think about the potential with a 12″ rage AND hatred bubble… Heralds of Khorne pay 20+ points for ONE of these results and that only effects thier own unit… this effects everything… EVERYTHING! If you have 20 or more models in that bubble you just gained an extra 20 attacks and also got re rolls to hit in the first round of combat!
What are your thoughts on Skarbrand? Do you think he was intentionally left as a Codex Chaos Daemons unit or do you think this was an oversight?
Also I have more pics from this weeks white dwarf on my Facebook page www.facebook.com/blogforthebloodgod
Thanks again for tuning in! Make sure you keep your eyes peeled for the next instalment of Tactica: Khorne Daemonkin! and while you are at it head over to Blog for the Blood God, give me a like, and join in on the other great content! Everything from Battle Reports to Hobby Tutorials, Rules discussions and tactics to Animated movies and 40k based comedy.
